Hey Methylation, Thanks for the MemoriesJuly 18, 2016Memories; we all have some we would rather forget, and some that we will hold onto forever. But how exactly is memory formed and what are the biochemical pathways that are in play? Recent studies have indicated that RNA and DNA adenosine methylation are important for the conversion of experiences, both good and bad, into […]
MeRIP-seq, N1-methyladenosine (m1A), and the Expanding EpitranscriptomeFebruary 23, 2016There’s no denying that understanding a new language can be tricky. Without a complete alphabet, the most important messages can be lost in translation. When it comes to complex languages, the epigenome is no exception. There are a number of RNA base modifications involved in post transcriptional regulation, including pseudouridine (Ψ) and 5hmC, and there’s […]
Gut Cells Control Microbiome With miRNAsFebruary 13, 2016Out on the cutting edge of biology lies talk of manipulating our gut microbiome. This sounds like a bold idea, but it looks like we may already be hacking our microbiomes without even realizing it. A new paper from Shirong Liu in Howard Weiner’s lab at Harvard suggests that our gut cells have already figured […]
tRNA Fragments Beat DNA Methylation in the Game of Paternal Intergenerational Epigenetic InheritanceJanuary 9, 2016The fact that parental diet affects the metabolism of offspring goes to show that inheritance can be shaped by environmental factors. While early studies focused on mom’s contribution, we’re now starting to see the importance of paternal contribution for shaping an offspring’s epigenome. For the past 15 years, the lab of Oliver Rando at the […]
Retroviral lincRNA Regulates miRNA Pluripotency SwitchDecember 28, 2015Everyone knows the old saying that “when life gives you lemons, make lemonade”, but what are you supposed to do when life gives you a genome full of retroviral ncRNAs? Nature seems to think it should evolve elaborate regulatory elements for your complex development. Two-thirds of the 10,000 long intergenic noncoding RNAs (lincRNA) found so […]
m6A Modification Protects Against Heat ShockNovember 13, 2015When exposed to high temperatures, cells behave much as we would on a hot summer’s day. Cell division, and most energy-consuming activities, come to a standstill (a bit like the human equivalent of lying perfectly still on a sunbed with a mojito in hand). Yet, despite the general repression of translation, genes encoding protective heat […]
Astrocyte microRNAs Welcome Metastatic Cancer Cells to the BrainNovember 12, 2015If asked what to bring on a fishing trip in winter, your answer probably wouldn’t be a bathing suit and sunblock. Likewise, when cancer cells metastasize, they need the right equipment to reside in unfamiliar organs; in other words, they must adapt their expression programs to accommodate their new microenvironment. How they do this is […]
Sperm miRNA Drives Intergenerational Stress ResponseOctober 30, 2015Stress is something that we’re all too familiar with, but its impact across generations has remained controversial. The distinction between intergenerational effect and transgenerational inheritance is particularly important to understand the differences between a direct effect on exposed gametes or indirect transmission to unexposed gametes. However, the molecular mechanisms behind both phenomena have received much […]
Small Molecule Targeting RNA Heralds Comeback for Antibiotic DiscoveryOctober 23, 2015Although many readers may have been excited about the release of the new Prince album last month, the biggest comeback story of this year was over at Nature. The antibiotic field has reported only covers or remixes since the 1980s, but now researchers from Merck pharmaceuticals have discovered a potential new antibiotic that works by […]
MicroRNA Isoforms Distinguish Between Breast Cancer SubtypesOctober 6, 2015Much like the early explorers who set out to find a new trade route to Asia and accidentally stumbled across the Americas, researchers mapping the transcriptome have come across some big surprises. Recently, Isidore Rigoutsos’s lab showed that the expression of microRNA isoforms (called ‘isomiRs’) and tRNAs depends on sex, population, and race. Now, this […]